scentral Posted June 28, 2012 Share Posted June 28, 2012 At long last, my 25 year mortgage is coming to an end. Incredibly, after numerous 'red' and 'amber' warning letters about a potential shortfall, my endowment policy actually covers the mortgage with about £500 on top. (Don't tell Bob Diamond!) The warning letters advised me to increase my endowment... Now when I first went in for a mortgage, I actually got to see the manager! That was in 1987 and he was very much a Capt. Mainwaring type. He asked what mortgage I was looking for, I didn't have a clue so he steered me onto Endowments. Telling me it would pay off my mortgage and leave a lump sum, it sounded good so I said I'd go with that. He literally rubbed his hands and said 'Oh, we like those!' Now I'm pretty relieved, after receiving all these warning letters, that these financial experts have actually not lost me any money over 25 years but feel that Endowments are basically a scam (my statements have shown me overdrawn by the mortgage amount every year and they charge many hundreds interest on this overdraft!) and that, with proper advice 25 years of paying in should have seen a greater reward than a poxy £500. After all, this recession has only hit, we've had good times over that 25-year period and it was meant to 'smooth out' performances of stocks, bonds and other stuff that neither I nor the banking experts understand. I gather that, once you accept the offer you've got no grounds for complaint. Anybody else had this or wish to offer advice? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeteMorris Posted June 28, 2012 Share Posted June 28, 2012 I don't know much about these things, but it sounds to me like you 'got away' with it. I'd just be happy to not have a mortgage any more, and the £500 will see a nice holiday or something! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
monkey104 Posted June 28, 2012 Share Posted June 28, 2012 Mate, I would just be happy with what you have. I too have an endowment policy but was in an enviable position a few years ago where I was able to pay off a large part of my mortgage. Fortunately I did not panic when endowments took a big dive a few years ago and held on to mine. They have steadily risen again, albeit not to what I was expecting initially and will not have as big a lump sum as I was expecting, but I am grateful that there is enough to cover the mortgage and some left over and not in the same boat as some who will have to find more money at the end of their policy term. I also believe that the policy was sold in good faith all those years ago Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sedith Posted June 28, 2012 Share Posted June 28, 2012 I took my low cost endowment out in 1985. When it matured two years ago there was an 8.5k shortfall to pay off the bank, so lucky I took heed of the warning letters about the shortfalls and converted 8.5k to repayment. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
charliewag Posted June 28, 2012 Share Posted June 28, 2012 i converted part of my endowment into a repayment mortgage 10 years ago. the endowment has now matured and was only a couple of grand short of the original figure so there was a bit left over for us. the main thing is i'm mortgage free and it's a lovely feeling. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lounge Jay Posted June 28, 2012 Share Posted June 28, 2012 I'm really holding back here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrs Overall Posted June 28, 2012 Share Posted June 28, 2012 We converted ours to repayment, just paid our mortgage off, we ended up with a couple of thousand in our pocket... I've got a nice revamped kitchen now... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
walkerx Posted June 28, 2012 Share Posted June 28, 2012 my endownment is still on track - but like desperatedan I converted mine to repayment - i done this a few years back when the big drop in interest rates happened - i then got my whole mortgage as fixed for 5 years and still pay my endownment which the banks no longer has an interest in - so when it matures it's all mine to decide what I want to do with it. it's like a lot of people reduced their monthly repayments when the interest rate drops, but I never as I rather pay off more if I could afford it while the rates were low, giving me less to pay when they went back up Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
truman Posted June 29, 2012 Share Posted June 29, 2012 At long last, my 25 year mortgage is coming to an end. Incredibly, after numerous 'red' and 'amber' warning letters about a potential shortfall, my endowment policy actually covers the mortgage with about £500 on top. (Don't tell Bob Diamond!) The warning letters advised me to increase my endowment... Now when I first went in for a mortgage, I actually got to see the manager! That was in 1987 and he was very much a Capt. Mainwaring type. He asked what mortgage I was looking for, I didn't have a clue so he steered me onto Endowments. Telling me it would pay off my mortgage and leave a lump sum, it sounded good so I said I'd go with that. He literally rubbed his hands and said 'Oh, we like those!' Now I'm pretty relieved, after receiving all these warning letters, that these financial experts have actually not lost me any money over 25 years but feel that Endowments are basically a scam (my statements have shown me overdrawn by the mortgage amount every year and they charge many hundreds interest on this overdraft!) and that, with proper advice 25 years of paying in should have seen a greater reward than a poxy £500. After all, this recession has only hit, we've had good times over that 25-year period and it was meant to 'smooth out' performances of stocks, bonds and other stuff that neither I nor the banking experts understand. I gather that, once you accept the offer you've got no grounds for complaint. Anybody else had this or wish to offer advice? What action did you take when all the red and amber warning letters came through? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Teddybare Posted June 29, 2012 Share Posted June 29, 2012 Endowment complaint advice. Never complain about the size of your endowment. There's nothing you can do about it. Be grateful for that which god has given you. If you receive complaints from females regarding your endowment, simply save up for a Ferrari or undertake further studies that allow you to progress to management. There's nothing like a Ferrari or power over others to make up for a small endowment Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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